Lee, Arthur, 1740-1792

<p>Arthur Lee (20 December 1740 – 12 December 1792) was a physician and opponent of slavery in colonial Virginia in North America who served as an American diplomat during the American Revolutionary War. He was educated in medicine and law at the University of Edinburgh and in London, respectively. After passing the bar, he practiced law in London for several years. He stayed in London during the Revolutionary War, representing the colonies to Britain and France and also serving as an American spy to track their activities. After his return to Virginia, he served as a delegate to the Continental Congress.</p>

<p>Born at Stratford Hall, Virginia, Arthur Lee was the youngest son of Hon. Thomas Lee (1690–1750) and Hannah Harrison Ludwell (1701–1750). Three of his five surviving elder brothers, Richard Henry Lee (1732–1794), Francis Lightfoot Lee (1734–1797) and William Lee (1739–1795), also became Revolutionary-era diplomats.</p>

<p>He attended Eton College in England and studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh, where he graduated in 1764. The title description of his thesis is: Dissertatio medica inauguralis, de cortice peruviano: quam ... ex auctoritate ... Gulielmi Robertson ... Academiae Edinburgenae praefecti ... pro gradu doctoratus ... eruditorum examini subjicit, Arthur Lee, Virginiensis. Ad diem septembris [1764] ... – Edinburgi : in aedibus A. Donaldson et J. Reid, MDCCLXIV. – 2 p. l., 47 p. ; 20 cm. on 13 May 1765 he matriculated at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands.</p>

LEE, Arthur, (Brother of Francis Lightfoot Lee and Richard Henry Lee), a Delegate from Virginia; born at ``Stratford,'' in Westmoreland County, Va., December 20, 1740; attended Eton College, England; studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, and was graduated in 1765; returned to London in 1766 and studied law at Temple Bar 1766-1770; was admitted to the bar and practiced in London 1770-1776; commissioned as agent of Massachusetts in England and France in 1770; appointed correspondent of Congress in London in 1775; commissioner to France in 1776 and to Spain in 1777; returned to Virginia in 1780; member of the state house of delegates 1781-1783, 1785, and 1786; Member of the Continental Congress 1782-1784; member of the treasury board 1785-1789; died in Urbanna, Middlesex County, Va., on December 12, 1792; interment in Lansdowne Garden, in the rear of ``Lansdowne,'' his home, at Urbanna, Va.

<ul><b>RACES</b>
<li>10/03/1792 VA US Senate Lost 24.07% (-31.48%)</li>
<li>09/01/1790 VA District 4 Lost 37.89% (-24.22%)</li>
<li>02/02/1789 VA District 07 - Initial Election Lost 0.78% (-63.18%)</li>
<li>12/31/1783 VA Continental Congress Won 100.00% (+100.00%)</li>
<li>12/31/1782 VA Continental Congress Won 100.00% (+100.00%)</li>
<li>12/31/1781 VA Continental Congress Won 100.00% (+100.00%)</li>
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